1. Technical Field
The invention relates to communication over an electronic network. More particularly, the invention relates to a method and apparatus for delivering formatted documents over an electronic network, such as the Internet, in a secure fashion.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Electronic networks, such as the Internet and intranets are increasingly being used to store and distribute a variety of data. For example, a World Wide Web (Web) page may include text, graphical displays, video displays, animation, and sounds. The Web enables a recipient to receive a document from a sender, regardless of platform, operating system, or E-mail system. Such communication is possible even when the document is not received at a computer but, rather, is received at a fax machine or networked printer connected to the Internet.
In many instances, the sender of a document resides on a local area network, referred to herein as an intranet. The sender""s computer may be connected to the Internet directly, or through the intranet""s server. Users who do not have a direct Internet connection can subscribe to the services of an access provider, called an Internet Service Provider (ISP) in the case of the Internet.
The ISP maintains a network that connects its clients to the Internet, providing a server computer that acts as a host to its clients. The client accesses the Internet by using a computer with a modem to dial up the ISP, through the public telephone system. The ISP usually provides a point-to-point (serial) link through which the client communicates directly to the Internet, using the Internet standard TCP/IP protocols.
Existing transmission schemes are frequently not suitable for sending certain documents over, for example, the Internet. Critical documents must be sent with complete security. However, the disparate E-mail systems have varying levels of security support. It is therefore difficult or impossible to determine whether an electronic communication is secure.
Various cryptographic schemes have been used to provide security for electronic communications. However, the recipient of an encrypted message must have not only the decryption scheme, but sufficient hardware and software to decrypt the communication. Thus, it is frequently not practical or possible to send such an encrypted message.
Thus, users are often reluctant to send documents electronically. These users must rely upon the slower and more expensive methods of courier service, and conventional mail service.
It is also desirable to be able to track a critical or sensitive document to insure that it has been properly received. However, it is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to track a document from point to point along the electronic network. For example, an E-mail message sent via the Internet is broken up into many discrete data packets. The packets are sent separately through the Internet to the intended recipient. Each packet may take a different route before being rejoined to form the original a document and delivered to the recipient. Therefore, tracking such document has required tracking each individual packet through each link of the Internet.
Additionally, while a computer may provide some level of security for a received document, for example, with passwords or cryptography, an electronic communication is not necessarily directed to a computer. Thus, a critical document sent electronically to a printer or a fax machine is potentially exposed to public view.
Even if such document is transmitted securely, it may not be legible when received. One problem common to E-mail is loss of document formatting. A document sent via E-mail is typically sent either as text in the body of the E-mail message, or as an attachment thereto. A text document usually does not retain the formatting of the original document. An attached document can retain formatting in some circumstances, such as if both sender and recipient have compatible software applications. However, some formatting may be lost even when the recipient opens a received document using the same application in which the document was created.
Changes in document formatting can create significant problems. Electronic forms may not be compatible if their formats are different. A misformatted document may not be comprehensible to the recipient. While many formatting changes are correctable, the costs to the recipient in terms of time and expense may be substantial.
It would therefore be an advantage to provide a method and apparatus for securely delivering documents over an electronic network, such as the Internet. It would be a further advantage if such method and apparatus tracks the sending and receipt of a document. It would be yet another advantage if such method and apparatus preserves the formatting of a delivered document.
In accordance with the present invention, a method and apparatus securely deliver documents over an electronic network. Specifically, a user can track the sending and receipt of a document, while preserving the document""s original formatting.
For the purposes of the discussion herein, the term xe2x80x9cdocumentxe2x80x9d includes any contiguous collection of data, including a stream of data, video data, audio data, animation, a platform-independent formatted document such as an HTML, PDF, or Envoy document, a platform-specific formatted document such as a Microsoft Word or Excel document, an unformatted document such as a text document, a custom-generated report or Web page, or a grouping of one or more database records, such as SQL records. The term document can also include a grouping of one or more such documents. While the preferred embodiment of the invention is adapted for use in document transmission over the Internet, the invention is equally applicable to other wide area or local area networks.
In accordance with a presently preferred embodiment of the invention, a send client application is provided that allows a user to send a document over an electronic network from the desktop of a sending computer. Such document may also be sent from within a document authoring application.
A dedicated server is provided to store the document received from the sending computer. The dedicated server then forwards an electronic message to a receiving device to notify the recipient of the document""s transmission.
The intended recipient downloads the stored document from the dedicated server in response to this message. In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the receiving device is a personal computer. However, in alternate embodiments, the receiving device includes a network server device, fax machine, printer, Internet-compatible telephone, Internet access appliance, or personal digital assistant.
A receive client application provided on the receiving device is used to download the document from the dedicated server. The receive client application is preferably a Web browser, but can be any other software application capable of retrieving the stored document while preserving document formatting. The receive client application permits the recipient to receive, view, print, and manipulate the document.
The send client application is accessed via an application window. The application window is displayed on the sending computer""s desktop. The application window includes a persistent tool bar for accessing main functions and a menu listing operational commands for the send client application.
A package manager and a package window are also accessed from the application window. The package manager lists all document activities initiated during an application session. The package window allows the user to specify parameters of the document delivery, including the recipient(s), the document(s), and send options. Document delivery parameters may be stored in a storage module for later modification and/or use.
A document is specified for delivery in several ways. The user can click and drag the document from the sending computer desktop onto one of the application window or the package window. The document may also be dragged onto either the icon representing the send client application or the icon for accessing the stored document delivery parameters. The user can also browse local and network directories and select desired documents. A document can also be sent from within a document authoring application.
A configuration user interface (CUI) is provided for directly invoking and customizing the dedicated server. In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the CUI is an HTML interface. The dedicated server is therefore directly invoked and customized via a Web browser. This HTML interface includes modules for sending and tracking the document, accessing account information, managing billings, and managing mail distribution lists.
The CUI is accessed via a CUI application window displayed on a managing computer desktop. The managing computer can be the sending computer, the receiving computer, the dedicated server, or some other entity in the electronic network. The CUI application window displays a main tool bar for accessing main functions, and a secondary tool bar for accessing secondary functions. The CUI application window also includes a workspace for displaying an interactive interface to an accessed function, and a menu listing operational commands.
The invention also provides a security framework that restricts system access to an authorized user. The types of security supported include authentication layers, secure socket layers, password protection, private key encryption, public key encryption, and certificate authentication. The security framework can be implemented as one or more modules, and can be incorporated into at least one of the send client application, the receive client application , and the CUI.